Abstract
Presentation Description :
Autophagic degradation of old, damaged or excess material is essential for a healthy retina. In aging and disease, the autophagic process is impaired through various types of dysregulation. For example, the final steps in the autophagic process involve the fusion of autophagosomes with lysosomes, degradation of cargo by lysosomal enzymes, and the recycling of useful material or discarding of the waste. The complex mechanisms that control lysosomal activity are finely regulated, and defects observed in models of retinal degeneration can impair the degradation of waste. These defects can lead to an autophagy “traffic jam”, in which markers are elevated due to slowed processing, not enhanced induction. Changes in expression of the transcription factor TFEB are observed in aged and diseased retina. As TFEB is a master regulator of autophagy/lysosome function, these changes can have substantial influences on autophagy in the eyes. Finally, new strategies to optimize autophagy in retinal diseases will be discussed.
This is an abstract that was submitted for the 2016 ARVO Annual Meeting, held in Seattle, Wash., May 1-5, 2016.